Battle of Spotsylvania – Harris Farm

Confederate dead from May 19th

After his unsuccessful attack the previous day, Ulysses S. Grant decided to cease his efforts at Spotsylvania, and instead shift the army southeast. But before he could do that the Confederates went on the offensive. Robert E. Lee ordered Ewell on the right to locate the Union right. Ewell took most of two divisions to do this. Fighting broke out around the Harris farm, and darkness brought an end to the combat. That night Lee recalled Ewell, as he did not want to undertake a general engagement at that place, where Ewell could not be supported by the rest of the army.

Fallen Confederates

This fight signaled the end of the Battle of Spotsylvania. The casualties from this long and desperate battle were heavy. The Federals lost about 18,000 men, the Confederates 10,000 – 12,000. These casualties hit the Federal army had. The losses from Wilderness and Spotsylvania, combined with the loss of 20,000 men whose enlistments expired, left the Federals with half the number of effective troops as had started the campaign. The losses were even heavier on the Confederates. At Spotsylvania Lee lost about 23% of his army. Those were men the Confederacy may not be able to replace, and the casualty numbers would only grow as the Overland Campaign rolled on.  

Confederate soldier, shot in the knee and shoulder

Battle of Spotsylvania – Last Union Attack

After the desperate fighting around the Bloody Angle, the fighting at Spotsylvania simmered quietly for nearly a week. No major attacks were made, and the time was spent maneuvering and skirmishing. Grant again decided to shift his army east, and the Federals moved to strike Lee's right. But by the time the Union troops were ready to attack Robert E. Lee had recognized what was happening and shifted Anderson's First Corps from the left to the right.

After waiting a few days for the weather to clear, Grant ordered that an attack be made on the position of the Mule Shoe, now the Confederate left. He hoped that Lee had weakened that front when he shifted his position a few days before. The lines went forward at dawn on May 18. The Federals soon found that Ewell's Second Corps still held the works, which the Confederates had only strengthened in the intervening days. The assaults were driven back by artillery fire alone, as the Federals did not even come within rifle range of the works.  

Works at Spotsylvania

Battle of Spotsylvania – The Bloody Angle

As Confederates worked on a new line of entrenchments in rear of the Mule Shoe, the desperate fighting continued around those entrenchments for many hours. Horatio Wright, a Federal general, wrote of the fighting:

Our men would reach over the logs and fire into the faces of the enemy, would staff over with their bayonets; many were shot and stabbed through crevices and holes between the logs; men mounted the works, and with muskets rapidly handed them kept up a continuous fire until they were shot down, while others would take their places and continue the deadly work.

Particularly vicious was the fighting around a work called the Bloody Angle. Private David Holt of Mississippi wrote this vivid account of his experiences:

We were in the V-shaped salient that had traverses thrown up to prevent an enfilading fire. The line was mended, and we [had to] keep it mended. Soon the Yanks made a determined charge with fixed bayonets, but the mud fought for us as the “stars were against Sisera, and for Isarel.” The breastwork was in a bog, and to make a charge in such a place against a line of fierce men close up, who have no idea of giving way, was more than those gallant Yanks could do. 

The very trench in which Holt fought

Many of them were shot dead and sank down on the breastworks without pulling their feet out of the mud. Many others plunged forward when they were shot and fell headlong into the trench among us. Between charges we cleared the trench of dead and wounded and loaded all the guns we could get hold of for the next charge. I was shooting seven guns myself. We stacked them up against the breastwork with the butts on the trench, and when the Yanks came, we picked them up one by one and fired and sent them down again. Many times we could not put the gun to our shoulder by reason of the closeness of the enemy, so we shot from the hip.

All the time a drizzling rain was falling. The blood shed by the dead and wounded in the trench mixed with the mud and water. It became more than shoe deep, and soon it was smeared all over our clothes. We could hardly tell one another apart.

The exhausted Confederate troops were finally withdrawn to the new works at 3 am on May 13th. It had been some of the hardest fighting of the entire war. For nearly 24 hours the battle had raged in terrible conditions. In some places the two lines were separated by only the parapet of a trench. The landscape was decimated by the huge number of bullets fired. In the Smithsonian today you can see the stump of a 22-inch oak tree that was cut down solely by musket balls. The cost of human lives was also terrible. The trenches on both sides were filled with bodies, sometimes piled several deep in the mud. One Federal staff officer wrote this on the sight of the trenches:

The appalling sight presented was harrowing in the extreme. Our own killed were scattered over a large space near the "angle," while in front of the captured breastworks the enemy's dead, vastly more numerous than our own, were piled upon each other in some places four layers deep, exhibiting every ghastly phase of mutilation. Below the mass of fast-decaying corpses, the convulsive twitching of limbs and the writhing of bodies showed that there were wounded men still alive and struggling to extricate themselves from the horrid entombment. Every relief possible was afforded, but in too many cases it came too late. The place was well named the “Bloody Angle.”

It is estimated that the Federals lost 9,000 men on this one day of fighting – the Confederates 5,000, plus 3,000 prisoners lost at the beginning of the fight. On the Union side this was all for no purpose. Even with superior numbers Grant and Meade were unable to organize an attack that could defeat Lee's line. 

Bloody Angle

Battle of Spotsylvania – Lee to the Rear

The Federal attack on the Mule Shoe salient at Spotsylvania quickly won success, but the attack soon stalled. A rapid advance could only be maintained so long, and the Federals were not prepared for this rapid success and did not have troops on hand to quickly follow up. The Confederates did their best to use this respite. John B. Gordon commanded Ewell's reserve division, and he formed a line to close the salient, and prepared to counterattack to regain the lost works. Lee rode to the site of the crisis, and after approving Gordon's plans, quietly rode to the front of the line. It was apparent that he planned to lead the charge. One Confederate officer recorded what happened next:

Just then the gallant Gordon spurred to his side, seized the reins of his horse, and exclaimed, with deep anxiety: "General Lee, this is no place for you! Do go to the rear. These are Virginians and Georgians, sir -- men who have never failed -- and they will not fail now. Will you boys? Is it necessary for General Lee to lead this charge?" Loud cries of "No! no! General Lee to the rear! General Lee to the rear! We always try to do just what General Gordon tells us, and we will drive them back if General Lee will only go to the rear!" burst forth from the ranks. While two soldiers led General Lee's horse to the rear, Gordon put himself in front of his division, and his clear voice rang out above the roar of the battle, "Forward! Charge! and remember your promise to General Lee!

Gordon's men charged, and with hard fighting drove back the disordered Federals. Parts of the Mule Shoe were recaptured, but many Federals clung tenaciously to the entrenchments. More rebels charged in, but the fight soon ground to a standstill.

Gordon

Grant ordered that attacks be made all down the line, hoping his men would find a weak spot somewhere. Many places were indeed weak, but the Union troops were unable to gain a foothold. Meanwhile, the fighting continued in the Mule Shoe, in the area which is now called Hell's Half Acre or the Bloody Angle. Confederate troops set to digging works that would straighten out the Mule Shoe salient, but until these were completed the Confederates would have to hold on in the bloody and often hand to hand fighting.

Battle of Spotsylvania – Federal Breakthrough

Entrenchments

After Emory Upton's temporary breakthrough of the Confederate line, Grant had decided to make another attack on the Confederate lines at Spotsylvania, and it went forward at 4:30 am 150 years ago today. The Federal troops headed through the misty predawn darkness towards the part of the Confederate line dubbed the Mule Shoe. It was the center of the Confederate line, and curved on both sides to form a horseshoe shape. This position was inherently weak, as it could be attacked on both sides, but Confederate engineers believed that the risk was necessary to hold a piece of elevated ground. The Confederate troops manning the position were of the Stonewall Division. Once commanded by Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, it was now under Allegheny Johnson.

Map of Grant's Attack

The position was worsened by a critical decision on the Confederate side. The previous day Lee interpreted some intelligence he received to mean that Grant was abandoning his position and on the move again. Therefore he ordered that the artillery be removed from the Mule Shoe in preparation for a Confederate movement. This supposition would turn out to be mistaken. Allegheny Johnson knew that his position would be weak without the guns, and he requested that the cannon be returned. Corps commander Richard Ewell approved the request, but the order was delayed and the artillery units had just started as the Federal attack came forward.

Dead Confederates

The troops of the Stonewall Division were awoken by a smattering of musketry from the pickets, giving warning of the Union advance. They hurried to get in position but surprised, greatly outnumbered, and without artillery support, they did not put up much of a defense. Within seconds the Yankees were over the parapet and driving back the Confederates in disarray. The Union troops rounded up hundreds of fleeing soldiers including Allegheny Johnson himself. The Confederate center was crushed. It was one of the greatest successes the Army of the Potomac had won in the entire war.

Battle of Spotsylvania – Planning the Main Attack

The previous day the Federals had made several attacks, but in the end they were all unsuccessful. But in one attack Grant saw an opportunity. Emory Upton had been able to secure a foothold on the Confederate line, before being driven back because of lack of support. “A brigade today,” said Grant, “will try a corps tomorrow.” The day was spent planning an assault on the Mule Shoe, which would be made the next day.

On this day Grant also wrote to Edwin Stanton, Secretary of War, to update him on the progress of the campaign:

We have now entered the sixth day of very hard fighting. The result to this time is much in our favor. Our losses have been heavy as well as those of the enemy. I think the loss of the enemy must be greater. … I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer. 

This line, “I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer,” became well known throughout the country as a slogan for the campaign. Grant would not retreat like other commanders of the army had done, he would fight it out to the bitter end.

Stanton

Battle of Spotsylvania – Sedgwick Killed

After the Federals lost the race to Spotsylvania the previous day, both armies brought up more troops and worked on their entrenchments on May 9^th. Lee's line was formed into a semi-circle to meet threats from several directions. The apex of the line was known as the Mule Shoe for it shape. Although it extended dangerously far from the main Confederate line, Lee's engineers believed this was necessary to hold a piece of high ground.

Sedgwick

At around 9 pm Union Major General John Sedgwick went out to supervise the placement of artillery along his corps' line. There was one point along the line where Confederate sharpshooters about 1,000 yards away had been particularly active, and Sedgwick saw his men ducking and dodging as bullets whistled overhead. “What?" Sedgwick remarked, "Men dodging this way for single bullets? What will you do when they open fire along the whole line? I am ashamed of you. They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance." Seconds later he was proved wrong, as a sharpshooter's bullet struck him just below the left eye. He may have been dead before he hit the ground. He was the highest ranking Federal casualty during the Civil War.

Sedgwick wounded

Battle of Spotsylvania Begins

Having decided to move to Spotsylvania, Grant's men continued to march in that direction on the night of May 7^th. At the front Sheridan's cavalry had to clear the road of Confederate cavalry. Lee was not certain where Grant was going, but ordered Richard Anderson, who had taken over Longstreet's corps, to move in the direction of Spotsylvania. He did not tell him the movement was urgent, but Anderson moved early, at 10 pm on May 7^th, to escape the stinking bodies and burning forest on the Wilderness battlefield.

Early on May 8^th, 150 years ago today, the Federal cavalry renewed their efforts to clear the road to Spotsylvania. Fitzhugh Lee's men, after a gallant stand, withdrew from their barricades and took up a new position on Laurel Hill, just northwest of Spotsylvania. He sent for Anderson to help, and at this point the Confederates' early movement paid off. Before long infantry were flying into the cavalry positions, just as Warren's V Corps arrived to attack. Warren did not know that the Confederates had infantry on the field, and ordered his troops to press forward. The men were tired and hungry from their long march, but Warren shouted, “Never mind the cannon! Never mind the bullets! Press on and clear this road! It’s the only way to get your rations!" The Federals charged, but at 60 yards the Confederates unleashed volley after volley. The bluecoats fell back and tried again, but again they were beaten back. Warren, seeing more Confederate infantry arriving, halted his attacks and told Meade of the situation.

Lines at Spotsylvania

Meade could not believe that the Confederates had arrived on the field so soon. He ordered John Sedgwick to join Warren and continue the attacks. Much time was spent in preparing the lines, and by the time they advanced at 6 pm, Ewell's Corps had joined Anderson's on the battlefield. The Federal assault was a disaster. Orders were confused, units lost their way, and only one division and one brigade ended up attacking. This weak force had no chance of breaking the Confederate line, and the Federals were soon broken.

They day had been a provident success for the Southerners. The Federal movement had been detected, and infantry was on hand to meet it. They had won the race for Spotsylvaia, and the attack which the Union had spent so long planning turned out to be an embarrassing failure.  

Wilderness to Spotsylvania

After his unsuccessful attacks on May 6, Grant decided that further efforts on this front would be useless. The Confederates had dug strong entrenchments, and he did not want to attack them. Instead, he decided to try to march around Lee's right. Moving down the Brock Road towards Spotsylavnia Court House, he hoped to get his men between Lee and Richmond, forcing the Confederates to fight on ground favorable to the Federals.

Movement to Spotsylvania

As the Union troops began their march, many believed that Grant was retreating just like all the other failed army commanders before him. But when they turned towards Spotsylania, they were disabused of that idea. “Instantly all of us heard a sigh of relief,” wrote one infantry man. “We marched free. The men began to sing. The enlisted men understood the flanking movement.” Grant would not turn back. Although he had been unable to crush Lee's army, there would be no turning back.

Unburied bones in the Wilderness

In this battle, the Federals reported 2,246 killed, 12,037 wounded and 3,383 captured, totaling 17,666. These numbers were likely low, as high casualty numbers were bad for public opinion on the home front. The Confederates lost about 11,000 men. Although Grant's losses were much higher, he could better afford to loose them. The Confederate supply of manpower was nearly exhausted, and they had little opportunity to raise more troops. A few more victories like this one, and Lee's army would be destroyed.

Entrenchments in the Wilderness